YouTube Gaming service to launch this summer

Google has announced the launch of YouTube Gaming, a service dedicated entirely to video game content that will compete with Amazon’s own platform, Twitch.

The internet services company had been expected to acquire Twitch last summer for an estimated US$1bn so it could merge the company with its YouTube division. However, it was Amazon and not Google that eventually purchased Twitch after Google reportedly balked at the last minute due to anti-trust concerns.

But now we have YouTube Gaming, which as reported by Engadget, was launched at a special event held in YouTube Space LA earlier today (12 June). The app and website will feature more than 25,000 titles, all of which will have their own dedicated page featuring videos and live streams.

“We’re connecting you to the games, community and culture that matter to you – by gamers, for gamers,” wrote YouTube Gaming via its official Twitter page. “Our brand new user experience puts games front and center, including live gaming.”

Gaming commentators have become insanely popular these last few years, not just through Twitch but on YouTube itself, with ‘Let’s Play’ broadcasters like PewDiePie (the most subscribed channel on the site, period) and The Rad Brad, among others, racking up millions of views. In what’s sure to be a tempting package for ‘Let’s Play’ fans, YouTube Gaming will offer high frame rate streaming, a DVR function and will allow users to automatically convert their streams into YouTube videos.